Outside Kitchen Frig

More great information and all really helpful.
Have to admit I didn't take the sine way into consideration as I thought a frig had no real electronics and wouldn't care.?? Will keep this information in mind while looking for a new inverter. Also will relocate the inverter next to the battery along with adding a second battery. Been wanting a second battery for a while anyway and now I have a reason to add the extra battery. ??

I have a suspicion the wire you are trying to draw power from is not carrying the load. Inverters must be kept very close to the batteries with very heavy cables. It is better to run a long extension cord than to use long DC connections.

Measure the DC voltage input when the refer is running.

Your refer may not like the modified sine way of your inverter assuming it is not a pure sine wave inverter.

I have a 1200W to run my LP/120 RV fridge in the trailer. I use it when I don`t want to run the LP on the road. You will need 1 good size/healthy battery and a larger inverter than you currently have (minimum 1000W to run good). As stated, it`s the start up that is the biggest draw.

Calicajun wrote:
Westend,
A 1,000 watt inverter, that is much more than I would have ever guessed.
Thanks for the heads up on what size inverter will be required.

Me too, I still have the Samlex sitting in a box. I figured if I need it for backup duty for something else, I would have one on hand.

It may be that a different 600W pure sine inverter would be able to handle the LRD but I upsized to eliminate any more issues. The Xantrex pure sine inverters are pretty good. No fan noise when operating the fridge and it handles the draw well, doesn't even flicker the LED lighting.

Westend,
A 1,000 watt inverter, that is much more than I would have ever guessed.
Thanks for the heads up on what size inverter will be required.

You'll need a really sophisticated meter to measure the instantaneous LRD. None of mine have been capable but a really good Fluke or HP may.

My experience: I run a small dorm fridge, average running draw is a bit over 80W. A new Samlex 600W inverter was unable to supply the LRA draw. I replaced the Samlex with a Xantrex 1000W inverter and all is now good. I'd estimate the LRD to be around 6-8 amps @120V. I had both inverters wired to two battery banks with a minimum of 4 AWG from 18" to the battery location.

You might need an ampclamp with inrush function, the startup only lasts a fraction of second. If you look in the fridge manual or the label it might have spec for LRA (Locked Rotor Amps) that would be your startup draw.

sch911 wrote:
Because of the in rush current draw requirements for the compressor. You'll need a much larger inverter to get it started, but once it's running it's low...

Wonder what the start up draw requirement is on the frig. Will try a current meter to find out the start up draw.

The wire used is heaver than the wire I tapped into for power.

Seemed like a simple project when I started. :o

And big enough 12 volt wire to start it.

Because of the in rush current draw requirements for the compressor. You'll need a much larger inverter to get it started, but once it's running it's low...